How to Get the Pack-a-Punch in Blood of the Dead - Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Guide - IGN (2024)

Blood of the Dead is one of three launch Zombies maps in Black Ops 4. For those that may be new to Call of Duty: Zombies, Pack-a-Punch is a machine that upgrades your weapons.

Upgrading your weapons can sometimes be tricky though, as you will need to complete a series tasks to unlock the Pack-a-Punch machine. However, once it is unlocked, you will be able to upgrade your weapons for 5,000 points (re-packing will cost 2,500 points), which will not only make the weapon stronger, but it will also have more ammunition, a new camo skin, and even special effects.

With that being said, here is the complete step by step guide on how to complete the Blood of the Dead Pack-a-Punch.

In order to unlock the Pack-a-Punch, you are going to need to complete the following steps:

• Build the Zombie Shield
• Obtain the Afterlife Essence
• Obtain the Warden's Key
• Obtain the Shield
• Turn On The Power
• Power the Zombie Shield
• Charge the Pack-a-Punch machine

Step #1: How To Turn On The Power In Blood of the Dead

In order to first build the Zombie Shield, you are going to need to turn on the power.

The first Power Switch can be found by unlocking the following rooms in order. If you are unsure of your current location, be sure to always check the top left corner of your screen where you will find the name of your current location displayed in white writing.

Power Switch One: Richthofen's Laboratory > Model Industries > West Grounds > Power House.

Upon entering the Power House, you will find the first Power Switch in the top left corner of the room. This will be illuminated by a light and can be found right next to a large sign that reads 'Lights Out'.

Turning on the second Power Switch can be a little tricky though, as there are a number of rooms that you will need to unlock in order to get to the switch. Simply unlock the following rooms in the order below to find the second Power Switch.

Power Switch Two: Catwalk > Recreative Yard > Cell Block Entrance > D-Block > C-D Street > Cell Block 3rd Floor > Michigan Avenue > Citadel > Citadel Tunnels > China Alley > Building 64.

Upon entering Building 64, you will find the second Power Switch located in the small far right room. In this room, there will be three switches and the floor will read 'No One Escapes'.

Once you have turned on both of the Power Switches, a heavy enemy will spawn nearby called 'The Warden'. You must kill The Warden in order to obtain the Warden's Key, the key will be dropped by The Warden following his death and will glow bright blue.

This key will not only allow you to access specific areas of the map, but you will also use the key to charge up the Zombie Shield by sucking the souls out of zombies.

Step #2: How To Build The Zombie Shield In Blood of the Dead

In order to build the Zombie Shield, you will need to collect three different parts.

Part 1: Obtaining the Afterlife Essence

To make the process of building the shield easier, obtaining the Afterlife Essence is usually best to be collected first, as in most cases you will pass at least one of its three different spawn locations while traversing the map to complete other steps of the Pack-a-Punch. It is also important to note that all Afterlife Essence's will be located on a red electrical box inside the Prison building.

Here are the three different locations that the Afterlife Essence may spawn in Blood of the Dead.

Location #1: Located within Time's Square, you can find the Afterlife Essence on the wall - near the stairs leading to the Showers - right next to the Auger DMR wall-buy. Time's Square is located just off of the Cafeteria.

Location #2: Located in Michigan Avenue, outside of the Warden's Office and directly beneath the Michigan sign.

Location #3: Located within the Library, you will find the Afterlife Essence right next to the doorway entrance.

Part 2: Obtaining the Shield in Blood of the Dead

The Zombie Shield can be found in the three different locations below.

Location #1: Located in the Citadel Tunnels, you will find the shield leaning against a wire and corrugated iron fence, not far from the locked elevator as you begin to walk down the winding staircase.

Location #2: As you exit the Citadel Tunnel staircase doorway, you will find the shield just to your left, leaning against a wall right next to a large pile of skulls. This is located just before you leave the Citadel Tunnels to lead into China Alley.

Location #3: Located right next to the Zombie spawn in China Alley, you will find the shield leaning against the alley wall.

Part 3: Obtaining the Warden's Key

To obtain the Warden's Key, you will need to kill the Brutus Boss Zombie in order to receive the key as a drop.

It is worth noting that the mini boss zombie will only spawn after activating both of the Power Switch. You can find our complete guide on turning the power on in Part 1 of our guide.

Step #3: How To Assemble The Zombie Shield

Once you have collected all three of the parts above, head on over to a workbench to assemble the Zombie Shield. Workbench locations are as follows:

Location #1: Located at the Docks, you will find the workbench located just to the left of the door when exiting Building 64.

Location #2: Located on Cell Black 3rd Floor, a workbench can be found to your left when heading towards the Gondola, along a wall of corrugated iron.

Step #4: How To Power The Zombie Shield in Blood of the Dead

With the Zombie Shield ready to go, along with the Warden Key, it is now time to head to the Roof. While you can simply keep heading higher up into Prison until you reach the Roof, you can also follow the order of rooms below.

How To Get To The Roof: Cell Block 3rd Floor > Infirmary > Roof

In order to power up the Zombie Shield, you will need to drain the souls from at least three to five zombies. This can be done by using L1 / LB to aim with the shield, followed by L2 / RT to use the shield's special Soul Blast attack.

It's important to note though, if you happen to take too much damage while you are carrying the Zombie Shield (check the shields health bar on the HUD), it will be destroyed and you will need to head back to the workbench to obtain another one.

Once you have drained the essences from the required amount of zombies, the key will begin to glow bright blue. It is now time to activate the Punch-a-Punch machine.

Step #5: How To Activate The Punch-a-Punch In Blood of the Dead

Now that you have reached the roof and have successfully charged the Soul Key, use L1 / LB to aim with the shield, followed by L2 / RT to use the shield's special Soul Blast attack on the Voltmeter to activate the Pack-a-Punch machine.

There you have it, our complete Pack-a-Punch guide for Blood of the Dead.